Picture-nail



W. BRINKERHOFP.

PICTURE NAIL.

A Patented Oct. 8, 1889.

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PICTURE-NAIL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 412,593, dated October 8, 1889. Y Application led May 29, 1889. Serial No. 312,509. (No model.)

To a/ZZ'wwm it may concern,.-

Be it known that I, WARREN M. BRINK- ERHOFF, a citizen of the United States, residing at Auburn, in the county of Cayuga and State of New York,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Picture- Nails; and I do hereby declare the following invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

IVIy invention relates to nails, and particuf.

larly to that `class denominated picturenailsg" and it consists in certain novel features of construction wherebya nail having a highly-ornamentalhead is cheaply' and quickly produced, and by means ofv said head the picture cord or wire will be held from slipping on the nail, and iwill be held from contact with the wall to which it is attached.

In the drawings I have shown one form in which I have contemplated embodying my invention, and it is fully disclosed in the following specification and claims.

In the said drawings, Figure lis a view of a nail embodying my invention, showing the head in section. Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the nail inserted in a wall or other stationary object and engaged by a cord or wire. Fig. 3 isa view similar to Fig. 2, showing the cord or wire engaging a different portion of the head. Fig. 4 is a front end view of said nail, and Fig. 5 is a top view of a nail engaged by a cord or wire. Fig. 6 is a side view, with head in section, showing head slanting and engaged by cord.

In the manufacture of nails where an ornamental head is desirable great difficulty has been experienced in producing such' nails cheaply, owing to the construction of said ornamental heads, which have been heretofore made customarily separate from the nail-body, of porcelain or other suitable ornamental material, and attached to the body of the nail. These constructions are very expensive to manufacture, and the nail must be driven into the wall with the head removed and the head then placed in engagement with the nail. It is also found in the use of such picturenails that the cord'or wire which sustains the picture or other article will slip over the smooth surface of the body of the nail and permit the picture or other article to become crooked on the wall when jarred by the vibration of the wall. The cord or wire will also, when placed in engagement with the nail, slip along the body of the same until it is in engagement with the surface of the wall, which is often covered with paper, and the cord or wire will leave a disiiguring mark or impression upon said wall or paper.

It is the object of my invention to provide a nail having ahighly ornamentalhead which is securely attached thereto and remains so attached while the nail is being driven home, and said head also prevents the wire or cord from slipping upon the body of the nail and holds it out of contact with the wall or paper.

In the drawings, A represents the main body or shank of the nail, which is of ordinary or any preferred construction and provided with a suitable iiange or head a. Upon the said main body A is placed a helical coil B, of wire or other suitable material. This coil is of such form that it embraces the body of the nail closely at its ends and is of larger diameter between'said ends, as illustrated in the drawings.

The coil B is attached to the nail preferbly at the end adjacent to the point of the nail in any preferred manner and the opposite end will engage the flange b. I may, however, secure it adjacent to the head, if I desire. The coil may be secured to the nail by drawing said coil tightly upon said nail and will hold by frictional contact, if desired, or

I may secure it to the nail by solder. I may v also, if I desire, provide the body of the nail with an annular groove'and seat the inner end of the coil in said groove. I prefer to form this coil B of wire of suitable diameter, and it is obvious that a very ornamental head is produced thereby, and thatvery cheaply.

The head of the nail being entirely between the head b of the main body and the point of the samc,^it will be readily seen that said nail may be driven home into a wall or other object without interfering in any way with the ornamental head B, the elasticity of the spiral adjacent to the head of the main body taking up the jar of the blows and preventing the displacement of the same upon the main body A. Especially is this the case where the outer'end of the head is provided ICO with .an opening of greater diameter than the opening at the inner end, such being my preferred construction.

When it is desired to suspend a picture or other object from the nail, saidnail is driven hoine until the coil of the spiral nearest the point of the nail is nearly or quite in contact with the wall or other object, and the cord or wire 1s made to engage the said spiral in such a manner that it will be held between two of the coils ot the same, as shown in Figs. 2 and 4. It' it is desired to prevent the picture from becoming crooked upon the wall, the cord or wire will be made to engage the spiral at or near 1ts greatest diameter, and said cord or wire will pass between two of the coils, the

spiral yielding to permit its access, and will be supported upon the body of the naii, as shown in Fig. 2. It will be readily seen that the portions of the cord or wire extending downwardly and outwardlyl from the body A w1 ll be firmly gripped between the coils of the spiral and securely held in the position to which they will have been adjusted.

If desired, the cord maybe made to engage the spiral at a point adjacent to its inner end7 as shown in Fig. 3, in which case the gripping action of the coils will not be so great; butin either case the cord or wire will be held out of Contact with the wall or the paper thereon, thus effectively preventing any defacement of the same.

The construction above described provides a nail having a highly ornamental head, which may be employed wherever'such a nail may be useful or desirable, and when used as a picture-nail said ornamental head will hold the supporting cord or wire outof contact with the wall and the paper thereon, and will also hold said cord or wire from slipping upon its support, and thereby prevent disarranging the position of the suspended article.

I d not desire to be limited to the exact form of construction herein shown and described, as variations might be made in the same without departing from the spirit of my invention.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A picture-nail provided with an elastic head enlarged from each end, substantially as described.

2. A picture-nail provided with a head consisting of a spiral coil separate from the main body of the nail, said main body being reduced at one end, forming a penetrating-point, substantially as described.

A picture-nail whose main body is provided with an elastic head movable thereon, substantially as described.

4. A picture-nail consisting of a main body provided with a head formed of coiled elastic material surrounding said main body, said head being secured to said main body at the extremity next adjacent to its point, substantially as described.

5. A picture-nail consisting of a main body provided with a head formed of spiral elastic material extending longitudinally of said main body and retained thereon at one point by frictional contact, substantially as described.

G. A picture-nail provided with an elastic head consisting of a spiral coil surrounding the main body of the nail, the outer extremity of said coil havinga greater diameter than the inner end, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof Iafiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.4

WARREN M. BRINKERHOFF.

Vitnesses:

EDWIN S. CLARKsoN, H. J. ENNIs. 

